Apparatus for printing tags and tickets



Feb. 6, 1968 c. E. QRYDMAN 3,367,264

APPARATUS FOR PRINTING TAGS AND TICKETS Filed July 20, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 REGULAR WRAP INVENTOR Feb. 6, 1968 c. E. RYDMAN 3,36

APPARATUS FOR PRINTING TAGS AND TICKETS Filed July 20, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet [3 United States Patent O 3,367,264 APPARATUS FOR PRINTING TAGS AND TICKETS Carl E. Rydman, Worcester, Mass., assignor to Dennison Manufacturing Company, Framingham, Mass., a corporation of Nevada Continuation-impart of application Ser. No. 437,495, Mar. 5, 1965. This application July 20, 1967, Ser. No. 654,782

Claims. (Cl. 101-110) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE In apparatus for printing tags, labels, and other articles, a printing head having wheels which may be set to print different indicia and also having interchangeable printing plates for concomitantly printing other indicia on the same articles, the plates sliding over the wheels and bearing on blank spaces on the peripheries of the wheels.

This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 437,495, filed Mar. 5, 1965, and now abandoned.

Objects of the invention are to provide apparatus which is readily adjustable to print different kinds of indicia, and which is durable and reliable in use.

According to this invention the apparatus comprises a head, a series of coaxial wheels rotatably mounted on the head with aligned peripheries carrying type which can be set in an axial row of any desired combination of indicia, a printing plate, and a guide on the head slidably to receive the printing plate, the guide extending axially in alignment with said peripheries and the wheels having blank spaces at one location around their peripheries to receive the printing plate with its type in the same plane as the type of said row so that indicia may be printed simultaneously by plate and wheels. Preferably, said first type are on belts fitted over said wheels. The guide should be disposed wholly to one side of the wheels and the plate should be thin so that it may slide from the guide over the peripheries of the wheels without recessing the wheels. The wheels should have surfaces at said spaces engaging the back of said plate so that the thin plate is supported by the peripheries of the wheels. The aforesaid plate may have one or more openings over certain wheels so that these wheels may print through the openings and may be set after the plate is slipped over the wheels. The apparatus may also have an auxiliary guide slidably to receive an auxiliary printing plate adjacent said plate with its type in said plane, and a backing for said auxiliary plate adjacent to the wheels, the backing preferably being stationary.

For the purpose of illustration typical embodiments of the invention are shown in the accompanying drawings in which FIG. 1 is a side view of the apparatus;

FIG. 2 is a view from line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a section on line 44 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a face view of a printed tag;

FIGS. 6 to 8 are views like FIG. (2 showing modifications;

FIG. 9 is a front view from line 99 of FIG. 1;

FIG. is a view like FIG. 8 showing a plate having openings over certain wheels; and

FIG. 11 is a section on line 11-11 of FIG. 10. I

This apparatus is more fully disclosed in copending application Ser. No. 437,513, filed on Mar. 5, 1965, and for the purpose of this disclosure only those parts of the apparatus are shown which are pertinent to the invention herein claimed.

3,367,264 Patented Feb. 6, 1968 Dial set wheels 1 are rotatably mounted on a shaft 2 statically mounted in end supports 3 and 4. On their peripheries each wheel carries type 5 such as digits 0 to 9. While the type may be formed integrally with the wheels, they are preferably formed on rubber belts 6 fitted around the wheels. The wheels may be turned in the usual way to set up any desired combination of indicia in the printing row opposite the platen (not shown) such as 00000 in FIG. 2.

AcCOrding to this invention guides 7 are disposed on opposite sides of the dial-set wheels in alignment with the printing row of type on the printing wheels. Slidable in these guides are printing plates 8 carrying additional type 9 such as K BRAND in FIG. 2. At one location around each wheel is a blank space carrying no type so that a printing plate may be slipped in from the guides 7 with its type in the same plane as the wheel type in the printing row. Preferably, the blank spaces have flat surfaces abutting the back of the printing plate as shown at 10 in FIG. 3. The guides 7 are mounted on brackets 11 fastened to the supports 3 and 4 with screws 12 (FIG. 9). As shown in FIG. 2 the guides 7 are disposed wholly to the sides of the wheels and as shown in FIG. 3 the plate 8 are thin; thus the plate may slide from the guides over the peripheries of the wheels without recessing the wheels.

Auxiliary guides 13 may be provided adjacent to the main guide 7 and in the same plane to receive auxiliary printing plates 14 carrying type 15. Bridging the space between the right and left guides 13 is a bar 16 to back up the auxiliary plates. The brackets 11 have bosses 17 and 18 enclosing spring-pressed plungers 19 and 20 which snap into openings 21 and 22 in the printing plates yieldingly to hold them in printing position. When set as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4 the apparatus prints a ticket T such as shown in FIG. 5, the wheels printing 00000, the main plate printing K BRAND and the auxiliary plate printing REGULAR WRAP.

In the modification shown in FIG. 6 all the wheels are set so that the fiat faces 10 (FIG. 3) are at the printing position and two main plates 23 and 24 and two auxiliary plates 26 and 27 are provided, each plate extending part way across the printing wheels.

FIG. 7 is like FIG. 6 except that the main and auxiliary plates 28 and 29 extend all the way across the printing wheels.

FIG. 8 is like FIG. 6 except that single pairs of guides 31 and 32 accommodate a single wide printing plate 33.

The modification shown in FIGS. 10 and 11 is like that shown in FIG. 8 except in that the wide plate 34 has openings 36 and 37 through which the wheel type may project. Thus the wheels may print through the openings and may be set after the plate is slipped over the wheels. One of the many uses to which this modification may be put is shown in FIG. 10 where the portion of the plate between the openings shows a certain kind of screw and the wheels at the openings show the characteristics of the screws, the latter being changeable without removing the plate.

It should be understood that the present disclosure is for the purpose of illustration only and that this invention includes all modifications and equivalents which fall within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. Printing apparatus comprising a head, a series of coaxial wheels rotatably mounted on the head with aligned peripheries carrying type which can be set in an axial row of any desired combination of indicia, a printing plate, and a guide on the head slidably to receive the printing plate, the guide extending axially in alignment with said peripheries and the wheels having blank spaces at one location around their peripheries to receive, from said guide, the printing plate with its type in the same plane as. the. type of said row so that indicia may be printed simultaneously by plate and wheels, the guide being disposed wholly to one side of the wheels and the plate being thin sothat it may slide from the guide over the peripheries of the wheels without recessing the wheels.

2. A printing device according to claim 1 wherein the apparatus has one of the aforesaid guides on each side of the wheels. 3. A printing device according to claim 1 wherein the plate has one or more openings over certain wheels so that these wheels may print through the openings and may be set after the plate is slipped over the wheels.

4 characterized by an auxiliary guide slidably to receive an auxiliary printing plate adjacent said plate with its type in said plane, and a backing for said auxiliary plate between the plate and wheels.

5. A printing device according to claim 4 wherein said backing is stationary.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS ROBERT E. PULFREY, Primary Examiner.

4. A printing device according to claim 1 further 15 F. A. WINANS, Assistant Examiner. 

